“You can refuse to pay! If you don’t, I’ll call the police! Let’s see whether you’ll hand over the money once we get to the station! By then, I won’t just make you compensate me—I’ll make you bow down and admit your wrongdoing until I’m satisfied and forgive you!” Liu Old Lady said triumphantly, looking as though she had already completely cornered the elderly couple.

Upon hearing the threat of calling the police, Zhang Mama instantly panicked. She and her husband didn’t care much about losing face; after all, it was just a matter of losing face. But their son was still young and had to make his way in society—he still cared about saving face. If they were to embarrass their son like this, it would be a real problem. So even though she was furious and itching to rush over and grab the old woman by the hair, she forced herself to hold back for the sake of her son’s reputation. Just as she was thinking it would be best to take a step back and figure out how to reason with this stubborn, unreasonable old hag, she felt her husband gently tug at her sleeve and whisper, “Honey, how are you feeling now? Can you move?”

“I can—just a momentary slip-up earlier,” Zhang Mama explained, though she still didn’t understand what he was up to. Was he planning to try to shake the other side down too? Was she supposed to pretend to be hurt and complain of pain so they’d join in?

But the next instant, Zhang’s father asked her again, “Then your legs and feet are still pretty nimble, right? Can you run?”

“Should be able to,” Zhang Mama replied, moving her arms and legs and mimicking her husband’s soft voice as she answered him.

Zhang’s father nodded with great satisfaction, then patted her hand lightly and whispered, “Good. Stand over there for a bit and loosen up your muscles. Wait for my signal, and we’ll run together.”

“Run?” Zhang Mama was completely baffled.

Still, since her husband’s wits were usually sharper than hers, she obediently nodded and promised, “Okay, I’ll do whatever you say.”

“Mm, good girl!” Zhang’s father suddenly sounded indulgent, even patting her head affectionately—as if he were still young—and made Zhang Mama blush from head to toe.

Zhang’s father had already stepped forward, standing before Liu Old Lady with his hands on his hips, exuding an imposing presence. Calmly, he asked her, “Call the police? You’re serious?”

“Of course! Do you think I’m just bluffing?” Liu Old Lady shot him a sidelong glance, her eyes brimming with disdain, before snorting, “Unless you pay me five thousand yuan right now and sincerely apologize, I won’t go easy on you! I’ll send you straight to the detention cell and let you taste what it’s like in there!”

“Five thousand yuan? No bargaining?” Zhang’s father asked again.

Liu Old Lady remained firm: “No bargaining!”

“Alright, I get it!” Zhang’s father showed no emotion as he stood there, arms crossed, staring straight at Liu Old Lady, struggling not to gag at the overpowering scent of her makeup. Then he asked her another question: “I’ve got one more thing to ask—you know who we are, right?”

His tone seemed to say: “Do you really think you can threaten me just by calling the police? Do you even believe we don’t have any connections behind us?”

End of Chapter 225: Counterattack 152